Cerberus Daily News - February 2014
For canon information, see the Mass Effect Wiki page for Cerberus Daily News. This page is for CDN members' non-canon additions.''The following stories contributed by Cerberus Daily News forum members were published on the CDN newsfeed during February 2014. See the main Cerberus Daily News page for current updates. February 2014 - Week Two 02/05/14 - 'TUCHANKA First Tuchankan Economic Summit Meets Begin' ''via Ghurst Rhay, The Ghurst Journal GHURST Tuchankan states and foreign representatives are meeting for the first time since the reconstruction of the relays to discuss economic policy and growth in Tuchanka. The summit, which includes representatives from the Urdnot Coalition, the Northern Plains Alliance, the Republic of Ghurst, Corel Heavy Industries, the CDEM, and others, seeks to address current hotbed Tuchankan issues. Two major issues of contention are the development of aerospace assets in the DMZ and the use of natural resources in the DMZ. Other topics to be discussed are clan rights and claims on uranium deposits, private contracts for industrial redevelopment, among others. Urdnot Kruz, Minister of Finance and representative for the Urdnot Coalition, said that he had “high hopes for this summit. The upcoming discussions will, if nothing else, pave the way for further discussions to be had. Personally, my hope is that we can establish an international economic union, but we will have to see how the discussions proceed before that will even be brought up.” The Urdnot Coalition has recently sponsored initiatives to decrease the barriers on trade between bordering clans. In addition, Urdnot Wrex himself has sponsored joint redevelopment of energy industries across the planet. Kruz went on to say that “Urdnot wishes to continue its policy of free international trade and joint development across Tuchanka. This trade strengthens not only domestic markets and , but also outside markets. It makes Tuchanka a true player in interstellar economics.” When questioned on the inclusion of CHI in the summit, Kruz stated that “Corel Heavy Industries has been integral to recent krogan economic development & reconstruction efforts.” Ghurst Spek, financial analyst and Ghurst representative, stated that “The inclusion of Corel Heavy Industries is a merely a play for NPA & Urdnot interests.” Kruz denied the claims, retorting that NPA and Urdnot interests rarely interact and that Corel represents a huge sector of Tuchankan economics. “To exclude Corel would be idiotic.” However, not all voices were optimistic.. Vynchar Kilz, a regional leader within the Northern Plains Alliance, claimed that “these talks are pre-destined to fail. The economic disparity between the states will turn the talks into an oppression convention, arguing about who needs help the most. In addition, this is a meeting to bridge economic gaps without any significant political unification. The economic and industrial realities of these states are so different that any economic action will completely benefit one power. The ‘free trade’ policies and joint ventures of the Urdnot Coalition have created a variety of miniature Urdnots, which will, unsurprisingly, be represented in these upcoming talks.” Gotheng Tirax, councilman to the Gotheng chief, will represent the Northern Plains Alliance in the summit. The CDEM officials present were incredibly hopeful. Lt. Commander Petrus Vaelix said that “The summit could shape the political and economic landscape of Tuchanka for years to come. With the removal of our forces rapidly approaching, measures like this, no matter how informal they may be, let us rest easy.” The meeting will be chaired by Urdnot Kruz, at the Urdnot capital. More to come as the summit progresses. February 2014 - Week Three 02/12/14 - ILLIUM Nos Astra Unveils New Security Mech via Ildis Vaar, Illium Robotics Monthly After months of speculation Illium’s Justice Directorate today publically announced the adoption of Isah Universal’s TAKIA as the colony’s new front-line law enforcement and security mech, replacing the ubiquitous Hahne-Kedar LOKI after a three local year government contract. A spokeswoman for Directorate praised the TAKIA’s autonomy and responsiveness to fluid circumstances in closed trials conducted in cooperation with Nos Astra police officials. Although a formality after positive identifications from industry insiders, the announcement also confirmed that a batch of TAKIAs were deployed among the suppression forces responding to last year’s Scarletwood riots in Nos Astra’s Cold Claw district. Guests at the unveiling were assured that no organic service roles would be replaced with mech service, and that the existing LOKI fleet would be retained in a support capacity for the remainder of their projected lifespans. Hahne-Kedar’s Illium office issued a brief statement congratulating its Republican rival on securing the lucrative contract, and highlighting the LOKI’s ongoing strong sales in the private sector. Other Terran figures were less polite though, with Nos Erra-based Rossam Consumer Products director Justin Garrison using an interview on this afternoon’s Tech Insider program to accuse Illium’s Board of Directors of favouritism towards corporations of ‘Old Council’ heritage, citing a string of failed contract bids from Terran companies in recent months. February 2014 - Week Four 02/21/14 - BREAKING Rachni Re-emergent in Ninmah, Tertiary Expansion Waves Confirmed via Shahin Mazanderani, Tayseri Times NINMAH Stir in the Presidium and across the extranet today, as the time locks on the coded data packets distributed to one hundred of the galaxy’s major news corporations earlier this morning expired, revealing stills, videos, and charts of rachni troop movements across the Ninmah Cluster. Our sources confirm that they were streamed through the channels keyed to the remote Listening Post X-19 which has been under a military mandated communications blackout since 0500 hours local time. However, despite the lockdown, our investigative journalists were able to gain first hand access to the station and confirm the contents of the data packets via confidential channels. Their reports contain both firsthand verification and the interviews of a number of station personnel who, given the sensitive nature of the information, have spoken on condition of anonymity. “We lost contact with most of the research teams first. We had two groups down on Suen’s surface, a batch of xenoanthropologists and xenobiologists working out of one of the dead hives. Whole thing was half collapsed, this giant sinkhole with tunnels around the edges. We thought it was just interference from one of the planet’s superstorms. But when finally got one of our satellites realigned the surface was just... crawling. Thermal signatures. Had to be hundreds of them, at least. Armored millipedes the size of IFVs, a bunch of these tanks on tendrils, and two or three of these, I dunno, bases on legs. They just punched their way out through the rubble like it was cardboard," claimed one of our sources. Another recounted the naval movements that followed. “They jammed our comms before we could enact the emergency protocols. Took them about threeish hours before they made contact. In the meantime they let us see what they were doing. What I mean is, they left our satellite network intact. This huge fleet, wings of cruisers or gunships, or something like that, dropped out of FTL above Suen," they said. "They were towing this hollowed out planetoid. They were building or growing... I guess it must have been more ships. We saw at least another dozen ships on the way, and spent the time tracking what movements we could. Pretty much all of which is in the packets they requested we send in exchange for the civilian teams on the surface who they were detaining.” The datapacket provided to the Tayseri Times indicates the restablishment of a significant hive network on Suen, secondary bases on Kashshaptu and a framework Helium-3 grid above Damkianna, plus an undisclosed number of tertiary hives with associated Queens and their retinues on Maldor, Inakhos, and the moons of Daganshtan. According to further reports from on-side journalists, a Queen and her guard have boarded Listening Post X-19 as part of what appears to be a diplomatic mission, and is currently in communication with the Commander of the Listening Post, one Deix Resocanthias, whom was demoted and assigned to the Listening Post as a result of controversy over his judgment during the Reaper War in withdrawing his forces and the Terminus irregulars under his command at the expense of the life of the planetary governor they were assigned to protect. Quiet attempts by the Hierarchy to replace Commander Deix during these proceedings have apparently been rebuffed by the rachni Queen. As of the time of writing it is unknown how the rachni Hives were able to achieve such a degree of military readiness or industrial infrastructure within such a short time. While a number of experts have indicated that the historical record shows that the species has returned from the brink of total extinction no less than twice (and possibly as many as three) they acknowledged that what the packet shows is, in the words of Dr. Florentina Armalasoi, “improbable to the extent of pure amazement. What we’re seeing is effectively a decade worth of work completed in less than three years.” However answers might be forthcoming shortly. A geth Consensus naval battlegroup has been dispatched through the Pangea Expanse Relay, independently of formal Conclave decision, and a Council mission is expected to arrive shortly thereafter. Category:Cerberus Daily News Articles